1873 Cl 3 Type Indian Head Cent - Third Lowest Mintage!

For more than 100 years,the Indian Head Cent has been one of the most sought after and highly collected coins of all United States issues. Almost all coin collectors, even those who don't specialize in cents, can tell you about the rarity of the 1877, and the 1908 Sand 1909 S coins. These coins are very scarce today, and in high demand. However, most "oldtime" collectors will tell you that this isn't anything new -"THESE DATES HAVE ALWAYS BEEN DIFFICULT". The difference is that theyused to beaffordable! With the advent of Pention Plan Investment, Numismatic Investment Groups, and "cash rich" 401K plans, most of the major "Key Date" coins have been driven up in price (in virtually all grades), due to indiscriminant buyingby entities who are not alltogether collectors, but smart investors and financial planners. The "BIG MONEY" has finally figured out that rare U.S. coins are a very practical investment forboth the short and long term investor !
In order for collectors to have the same opportunity for successful investment, they must be able to spot opportunities before the Institutional Investors do. This brings me to the subject of this review. In my opinion, a genuine investment opportunity exists in the 1873 Closed "3" coin. The RED BOOK of U.S. Coins, by R.S. Yeoman, lists the mintage of 1873 as almost 12 Million pieces. What they don't tell you, is that almost 11 Million of them are of the Open "3" variety. THAT'S RIGHT ! !The 1873 Closed "3" variety only had a mintage of 1,002,000 coins ! That makes this coin the third lowest mintage of the entire Indian Head Cent series, behind only the 1909 S, and only slightly behind the 1877. PRACTICALLY NOONE IS AWARE OF THIS! At present, the Closed "3" variety is just slightly (just a few dollars) higher in price than the Open "3" coin. I have been quietlylooking forthis variety, and I can tell you, they are few and hard to find ! When you do run across one, it generally is in lousy condition. It seems thatmost Indian Cents between 1869-1879 are petty worn when you do find one. This may have something to do with the fact that the U.S. suffered it's worst economic depression during those years; - Far worse than the 1929-1935 depression !
Total mintage of the 1873 Cl "3" cent variety, isonly 149,000 coinshigher than the 1877. The 1908 S is almost twice that mintage, and the 1871 and 1872 issues saw more than four times as many pieces coined. This, along with the fact that, for the most part, this coin has gone "unnoticed" for more than 130 years,leads me to believe that because of general disinterest, this coin may just be rarer than mintages suggest,simply because fewer coins werepreserved. For this reason, I believe thatthe 1873 Closed "3" cent represents a significant investment opportunity for all collectors. Remember, when the Investors and "BIG MONEY" slick operators due notice this opportunity, the "Window" will quickly slam shut for the collector!
If you found this guide interesting or helpful in any way, I would greately appreciate your taking a few moments to check the ( YES )box at the bottom of this page. All information sources are available upon request. (mintex03)